Kyrie Irving has opted in with Nets, but situation in Brooklyn is far from resolved | Opinion

Jeff Zillgitt, USA TODAY
·4 min read

Kyrie Irving eliminated some free-agent drama by deciding to exercise the player option on the final year of his contract with the Brooklyn Nets for 2022-23.

But that doesn’t mean the drama has been eliminated.

It is Kyrie Irving, after all.

At the very least, Irving will not be a free agent when free agency opens at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday.

And while Irving gave a quote to The Athletic that indicated he wanted to honor his commitment to the fourth and final season of his contract and to teammate and friend Kevin Durant, some NBA executives and agents believe the matter is far from settled.

As one front-office exec put it to USA TODAY Sports: "Is anything with Kyrie ever settled?" The person requested anonymity because he is not allowed to talk publicly about an opposing team's player under league rules.

The comment is not a shot at Irving. That’s reality.

NBA OFFSEASON PRIMER: Top 20 (potential) free agents this summer

SPORTS NEWSLETTER: Get the latest news and analysis in your inbox

This is the player who told Boston Celtics fans, "If you guys will have me back, I plan on re-signing here," only to leave Boston for Brooklyn following the 2018-19 season.

In his exit interview following a first-round playoff loss to Boston in April, he told reporters, "I don’t really plan on going anywhere," only to seek sign-and-trade deals right up until he couldn’t find one this week, according to ESPN.

With Irving, you have to operate with this baseline: anything is possible, no matter what he says. That doesn’t make Irving a bad guy. Just don’t be surprised.

Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant have played just 57 regular-season and playoff games together for the Nets.
Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant have played just 57 regular-season and playoff games together for the Nets.

While a sign-and-trade was possible, that move had hard-cap ramifications for the team receiving Irving in a deal, which would have negated that team’s ability to make additional roster improvements.

Without a sign-and-trade in place, it was unlikely Irving would decline his player option for $36.4 million and become a free agent. There aren’t many teams, especially contenders, who could have salary cap space to offer Irving a large contract that included years of security.

Now what?

One simple answer is that Irving spends the 2022-23 season with the Nets, and he becomes a free agent next summer. The Nets play out the season in a top-heavy Eastern Conference with Irving, Durant and Ben Simmons. Since the Cleveland Cavaliers' run of four consecutive NBA Finals appearances ended in 2018, four teams have represented the East in the Finals. No team has a lock on that spot anymore. Irving, Durant and Simmons is a pretty solid core to roll the dice with.

NBA POWER RANKINGS: Who is set up best for the 2022-23 season?

DRAFT WINNERS & LOSERS: Which teams had the best and worst draft?

The Nets could also trade Irving before the season. Let’s not pretend the relationship between the two sides is simpatico. Irving declined to receive the COVID-19 vaccine last season and played in just 29 regular-season games. The Nets initially ruled him out for home and road games, and when injuries piled up, they said he could play in road games. He was a part-time player, and James Harden’s frustration grew to the point where the Nets had to trade Harden to the Sixers for Simmons.

After the season, Nets general manager Sean Marks said, "We’re looking for guys that want to come in here and be part of something bigger than themselves, play selfless, play team basketball, and be available. That goes not only for Kyrie but everybody here."

The two sides did not reach an agreement on a contract extension before Irving decided to pick up his player option. If the Nets find a desperate team — and there’s always one of those — and get a good deal, a trade in the offseason or in-season before the deadline is a real possibility.

It’s also possible Irving — depending on how the season goes — signs an extension with the Nets following next season and never hits free agency in 2023.

In the three seasons Irving and Durant have spent with Brooklyn — Durant missed all of 2019-20 recovering from a ruptured Achilles — they have played in just 57 regular-season and playoff games together, with second- and first-round postseason exits.

Irving’s future with the Nets also impacts Durant’s future with the team. What will the Nets have to show for the Irving-Durant pairing after the 2022-23 season? The situation is far from resolved.

Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kyrie Irving-Brooklyn Nets situation is still far from resolved

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest Stories

  • Police 'reviewing information' about Tory MP Mark Menzies after alleged misuse of funds

    Police say they are reviewing "information" about Conservative MP Mark Menzies after Labour asked for an investigation into claims he misused party funds. Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds wrote to Lancashire Police asking for an inquiry after The Times reported he had made a late-night phone call to an aide asking for funds to pay off "bad people". Mr Menzies told the paper he contests the allegations against him.

  • US regulators mulling bid to limit bonuses for Wall Street execs, WSJ reports

    U.S. banking regulators are planning to revive a proposal that would require big banks to defer executive compensation and claw back more of their bonuses if losses pile up, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. Six agencies, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), are involved in developing the plan, the report said, adding that the measure could be proposed in the coming days. The Federal Reserve is not involved in drafting the proposal, the report said.

  • Google scraps minimum wage, benefits rules for suppliers and staffing firms

    Alphabet Inc's Google on Friday said it will roll back requirements that U.S. suppliers and staffing firms pay their employees at least $15 an hour and provide health insurance and other benefits, a move that could allow the tech giant to avoid bargaining with unions. The elimination of the 2019 policy, along with other steps such as limiting access by temporary workers and vendors to internal systems, are designed to comply with shifting U.S. and global labor regulations related to contingent workers, a spokesperson for Mountain View, California-based Google told Reuters. "These updates bring us in line with other large companies and simply clarify that Google is not, and has never been, the employer of our suppliers’ employees," the spokesperson said.

  • The macro headwinds that geopolitical risks may stir up

    As tensions in the Middle East escalate, investors are reevaluating their portfolio allocations to offset any geopolitical risks. Brandywine Global Portfolio Manager John McClain joins the discussion to provide insights on navigating this environment while crude oil prices (CL=F, BZ=F) are also slowly ticking up Friday. McClain highlights three key factors that investors should consider from a "macro perspective." Firstly, he sees "a lot of upside potential" for oil prices, driven by a supply-demand dynamic. Secondly, McClain emphasizes the importance of interest rates, calling the US Treasury market "a safe haven," although he cautioned that investors "have to be careful" with their positioning along the yield curve. Lastly, he highlights the "US exceptionalism" in the foreign exchange (FX) market with the US dollar benefiting from being "the only place to go for AI." When it comes to portfolio construction, McClain advises investors to focus on "what industries are driving" the particular region they are invested in. He underscores the crucial role played by central banks and their monetary policies, which can significantly impact portfolio performance. For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Wealth! This post was written by Angel Smith

  • Ryan Gosling and Miller/Lord’s Project Hail Mary could be the sci-fi event of 2026

    Amazon MGM just set a March 20, 2026 release date for Project Hail Mary, an adaptation of the Andy Weir novel. The film stars Ryan Gosling and is directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

  • Powassan council to revisit library proposal to increase budget by 26 per cent

    Powassan town council plans to revisit a request from the local library board to raise its budget by 26 per cent this year. Council first rejected the proposal from the Powassan District Union Public Library at its April 2nd meeting and countered with a seven percent increase. However, following a presentation from the library board members and its CEO at the April 16th meeting, Mayor Peter McIsaac said despite the council already setting its budget, “we’re going to bring the library portion bac

  • Polish man arrested in Russian plot to assassinate Volodymyr Zelensky

    Polish police have arrested a man suspected of aiding a Russian plot to assassinate Volodymyr Zelensky, targeting an airport the Ukrainian leader uses for overseas travel.

  • UPDATE 1-New York fails to reach contracts with 3 major offshore wind farms

    A New York state agency on Friday said it had failed to reach final contract agreements with the developers of three major offshore wind projects, blaming a decision by General Electric Vernova to scrap plans for a new turbine. The projects affected include Attentive Energy One, being developed by TotalEnergies, Rise Light & Power and Corio Generation, Community Offshore Wind, backed by RWE and National Grid Ventures, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority said in a statement. Excelsior Wind, being developed by Vineyard Offshore, is also affected, it said.

  • Flames want to promote their team as a desirable destination for NHL players

    CALGARY — Winning more games and the construction of a new arena will convince more NHL players that Calgary is a desirable place to play, some Flames say as they head for the exits. Calgary finished 17 points out of a playoff spot this season with a record of 38-39-5, and missed the post-season a second straight year. A slow start to the season combined with big-name pending free agents not signing contract extensions produced midseason lineup changes that hampered the club's progress. Other pl

  • Stock market today: Gold and oil spike and US futures drop after Iran comes under fire

    Gold and oil prices jumped following Israel's apparent retaliation against Iran before paring gains, while stock markets look set to open lower.

  • Receiver Eugene Lewis optimistic about Edmonton Elks' 2024 fortunes

    Receiver Eugene Lewis can't wait to start earning quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson's trust. The signing of Bethel-Thompson, a two-time Grey Cup champion, was Edmonton's biggest off-season move. The Elks have finished last in the West Division three consecutive years. CFL training camps open next month. "I know what a great quarterback can do," Lewis said. "Somebody with experience, somebody who's been through it and won championships and MBT has done that. "To have another guy like that, anoth

  • The Latest | Full jury of 12 people and 6 alternates seated in Trump's hush money trial in New York

    NEW YORK (AP) — A jury of 12 people and six alternates was seated on Friday in former President Donald Trump’s hush money criminal trial. The completion of the jury selection process tees up the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president for opening statements and weeks of testimony in a case charging Trump with falsifying business records to suppress stories about his sex life emerging in the final days of the 2016 election. The jury includes a sales professional, a software engineer,

  • EastEnders' Balvinder Sopal thanks colleagues after mum's death

    EastEnders star Balvinder Sopal has thanked colleagues for their support in the days following the death of her mother, Nirmal.

  • Europe discards Arsenal and Liverpool shift focus to EPL title race

    LONDON (AP) — What will it take to win the English Premier League with six games remaining? That's easy — perfection. Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool — all eliminated from their European competitions this week — are locked in a tight battle for the title. Defending champion City leads both rivals by two points but with Pep Guardiola's team playing an FA Cup semifinal against Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal and Liverpool can gain ground. “If you want to be champion in the Premier League, you

  • Israel’s strike has exposed Iran’s fatal weakness

    Israel’s presumed counterstrike against Iran has proved Joe Biden and David Cameron wrong in their insistence that Israel should just “take the win”. Instead, it fought back – and yesterday Iran was trying to pretend that nothing had happened.

  • Next UN climate talks are critical to plot aid for poorer nations, says incoming president

    WASHINGTON (AP) — The man who will run United Nations climate talks this November views the negotiations as a key link in international efforts to curb global warming. The conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, must build on last year's successful agreement to transition away from fossil fuels, said Mukhtar Babayev, Azerbaijan's environment minister who will serve as conference president of the talks known as COP29 this fall. And this fall's meeting must help pave the way for countries to come together

  • Police reviewing allegations against suspended Tory MP accused of pay-off to ‘bad people’

    Officers consider letter calling on them to investigate

  • Sunak accused of making mental illness ‘another front in the culture wars’

    Charities say high rates of people signed off work are caused by crumbling public services after years of underinvestment

  • Police 'reviewing letter' about Tory MP Mark Menzies after alleged misuse of funds

    Lancashire Police says it is in the ‘process of reviewing available information in more detail’

  • TREASURIES-Yields slip as investors move toward safe haven assets

    Easing concerns over a broad Middle East conflict will likely continue to pressure Treasuries, which have sold off for much of the week on worries that persistent inflation will prevent the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates this year. A number of Fed officials have said this week that they do not feel urgency to cut rates given the strength of the U.S. economy and labor market. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari told Fox News Channel late Thursday that he also wants to be "patient," with the first rate cut "potentially" not appropriate until next year.